Artificial foot.



UNITED STATES PATENT orrron.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 1905- Application filed July 21,1905. Serial No. 270,718.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FRANK W. MERRIOK, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Artificial Feet; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear,

and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to improvements in artificial feet; and the object of the invention is the provision of an artificial foot which affords the wearer an easy, elastic, life-like tread and makes it possible to give a natural appearance to the shoe.

The invention also has for its object the provision of a simple, easily removable and renewed sole or tread portion which is secured to the upper portion of the foot.

I/Vith these and other objects in view the invention comprises certain novel constructions, combinations, and arrangements of parts, as will be hereinafter fully described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective view'of the upper or instep portion of the foot, the same being turned upwardly, so that the under side thereof can be seen. or tread portion of the foot. Fig. 3 is a longitudinal central sectional view of the foot with the parts combined. Fig. 4 is a similar view showing porous or spongy material inserted between the upper and lower portions of the foot. Fig. 5 is a detail sectional view showing one of the sockets or mortises of the upper and one of the tenons of the lower portion of the foot, said tenon being provided with an air-cushion.

The artificial foot forming the subjectmatter of the present invention is so constructed that theupper or instep portion thereof rests upon and is supported by an elastic sole or tread portion, the said sole or tread portion being removably secured to the said upper or instep portion. The means of securing the sole or tread portion to the upper or instep portion is such that the weight of the wearer can force the instep or upper portion of the foot downwardly to a slight degree before it is limited by contact with thle elastic bottom portion of the tread or so e.

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the sole.

In the accompanying drawings I have illustrated practical and preferable forms of construction for the foot and will now proceed to describe my invention, reference being had to said illustrations.

The artificial foot comprises two portions an upper or instep portion 1, which is made of any suitable material, but preferably of willow wood, and a lower tread or sole portion 2, preferably made of rubber or similar elastic material. The upper is recessed and notched upon its upper surface, as at 3, so that any suitable device secured to the leg of the wearer may be made to rest in the said recess or socket. The lower or under face of the upper or instep 1 is provided with sockets or recesses 4 and 5 which form mortises to reoeive correspondingly-shaped tenonsformed upon the sole or tread portion of the foot.

The sole or tread portion of the foot is, as stated above, preferably made of elastic material, such as rubber, and is formed with an upper surface capable of fitting upon the under surface of the upper or instep 1. Rising from the upper surface of the tread or sole 2 are studs or tenons 6 and 7. The tenons or studs 6 and 7 are made of suitable size and shape to fit snugly within the recesses or mortises 4 and 5 when the parts of the foot are placed together. In order to increase the elasticity and the cushioning effect of the lower portion of the foot, the upper ends of the tenons or studs are preferably made of more porous or spongy material than the sole or tread portion, and the weight of the wearer can thus crush or force downwardly said tenons until the upper portion of the foot engages the surface of the tread. To facilitate this action, a slight s ace is left, as at 8, between the upper an lower portions of the foot when there is no weight poised upon said foot. The same object maybe accomplished, however, by forming the whole upper surface of the tread or sole of the artificial foot of lighter and more spongy material than the lower portion of said tread or sole, the studs or tenons in this instance being also made with porous and spongy material. The whole effect of this construction is to greatly cushion the weight of the wearer in walking. As shown in Fig. 5, the cushioning efiect roduced in the foot may be accomplishe by forming the studs or tenons 6 and 7 with aircushions, as at 9, the air-cushions fitting in the recesses or mortises and maintaining the weight of the upper portion of the foot and the wearer.

While the studs or tenons 6 and 7 may be of any exterior contour, I preferably make them either cylindrical, as shown at 6, or oval or oblong, as shown at 7. These studs or tenons are made of substantial size, so that they firmly hold the tread or sole portion'of the foot in place when applied to the bottom of the instep. I find it advantageous to form the studs of an elongated or oval shape and usually form the front stud 7 of such contour, even when the rear stud 6 is made shorter or cylindrical. Any lateral or longitudinal movement between the parts of the foot are effectually prevented by the studs or tenons. These studs or tenons may, if desired, form the sole means of securing the bottom portion of the foot and the upper portion together, and while they securely hold the tread or sole in place they permit of the renewal of said sole or tread without dirficulty. Additional means may also be used for securing the parts together, as a casing or cover drawn over the whole.

The artificial foot constructed as shown and described can be easily made to fit a shoe of proper size for the wearer, and the instep and sole are usually shaped approximately like the ordinary human foot. The forward end of the tread or sole may be shaped like the natural toes of the wearer, if preferred. The foot thus properly shaped will maintain the shoe of the wearer in proper shape and yet permit of an easy elastic tread forthe wearer. When the yielding sole or tread portion becomes worn or out of shape, it can be easily renewed at any time by merely taking off the old sole or tread and substituting another in place thereof.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-- 1. An artificial foot, comprising an upper or instep portion and a lower elastic tread or sole portion, studs or tenons more porous than the body portion of the tread and longer than the recesses formed in the upper or instep in which. they fit, for securing the parts together.

2. An artificial foot comprising an upper or instep portion having recesses or mortises formed therein, atread or sole portion formed of elastic material and tenons or studs projecting upwardly from the sole or tread, the said tenons being made of elastic material, more porous or spongy than the body portion of the tread or sole.

3. An artificial foot comprising an upper having sockets or mortises formed therein, a lower portion or tread having upwardlypro jecting tenons made of porous or spongy material and capable of fitting into the mortises or recesses of the upper or instep portion, a

space being left between the upper and the lower portions of the foot so that the weight of the wearer will compress the porous or spongy tenons or studs.

In testimony whereof I affiX my signature in presence of two witnesses.

FRANK W. MERRICK.

l/Vitnesses CHARLES C. SPENCER, GEORGE E. WIssLER. 

